London swelters in longest stretch of hot weather in almost 60 years
Central London has now recorded its longest stretch of high temperatures since the 1960s, as the capital enters its sixth day of hot weather.
Temperatures in London today surpassed 34 degrees for the sixth day in a row — the first time it has done that since 1961, the Met Office said.
It comes as much of England and Wales is set to be hit by several days of thunderstorms, with officials warning of expected power cuts, flooding and travel disruption ahead.
The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for England and Wales, as well as parts of Scotland.
The warning will run from tonight until next Monday evening.
The storms come after heavy rain and flooding affected large swathes of Scotland last night.
The bad weather is thought to have caused a landslip that derailed a train in Stonehaven this morning, killing three people.
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service told the BBC it had received more than 1,000 emergency calls overnight due to the severe weather.
Meanwhile Devon and Cornwall Police warned the south-west of England is “full to capacity”, leading to “unprecedented demand” for 999 services as holidaymakers flock to the region in pursuit of sunshine.
In Sussex, more homeowners had water supplies cut off or restricted today. At least 300 householders had already been without tap water since Friday, the BBC reported.